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The chandelier in the front room of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times

The chandelier in the front room of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times

The backyard of the home at 402 W Ave. D. The house was built in 1904 and is for sale. The house was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times

The chandelier in a bedroom of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times

A bit of San Angelo history is up for sale. Over a century old, this home-turned-business has seen families grow, businesses excel and times change.

Built in 1904, the property at 402 W. Ave. D holds the memories of many over the years. One family, the Brights, owned it from 1911-99.

"Myself and my brother were raised in that house," said Ponda Rodrigue, one of the third-generation Brights to own the home.

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The chandelier in the front room of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. (Photo: Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times)

Rodrigue didn't know who owned the home before them, but mentioned it was very much a home of the time.

Rodrigue's grandparents bought the home in 1911 and took in boarders.

"During the war, grandma took in nursing students trained at Shannon," Rodrigue said. "She was very giving. The road used to be referred to as 'hobo trail,' and she would always give a meal to people."

Rodrigue and her brother, Thomas "Tom" Bright, decided to sell the home after their mother died of cancer in the late 1990s. Her son was angry that she sold it, but all the family was happy with what it later became.

The new owners continued in the footsteps of Rodrigue's grandmother, aiming to please residents with food once again, turning it into a restaurant/home in 2000.

One owner, Bobby Varner, was a San Angelo native who fell from the public eye only to rise again.

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The living room of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. (Photo: Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times)

Varner was part of a scandal in 1972. As a married man with financial security, he did something taboo in that conservative time: He came out as gay. What may have devastated others instead made Varner happier.

He and his partner, Terry Weber, left San Angelo and started over in Houston, establishing a tea room. There, they met a warmer welcome and embraced their life together, which would last 44 years.

That's where they met Dan and Debbie Amerson.

"They were so much fun," Dan Amerson said. "We knew them for over 20 years and they were dear friends."

In 1999, Varner decided it was time to return to San Angelo. Varner and Weber bought the home at 402 W. Ave. D from the Brights and opened their second business, The Butler's Pantry.

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The chandelier in the front room of a 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D. The house is for sale and was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. (Photo: Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times)

When they opened the doors in 2000, it became clear times — and minds — had changed.

"People of Bobby's generation remembered him, and when they returned, the scandal and attitude had changed," Amerson said.

The Butler's Pantry operated downstairs while Varner and Weber lived upstairs. The small café thrived for over a decade. On the business' old Facebook page, the reviews rated it 4.6/5 stars, with many of reviewers talking about the fried avocado — made by topping half an avocado with a seafood or chicken salad and deep-frying it.

"It was delicious," Rodrigue said. "They also made the best bread pudding I ever had, served warm with ice cream."

The Butler's Pantry was popular, Rodrigue and Amerson agreed. With the restaurant's monthly menu changes, beautiful plates and antique charm, it was a hit. Despite the success, eventually the doors closed.

"They had a wonderful business there, and then their age started catching them," Amerson said.

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The 1904 home at 402 W Ave. D is for sale. The house was a restaurant called Butler's Pantry as well as a private family residence. (Photo: Yfat Yossifor / San Angelo Standard-Times)

Varner and Weber started to suffer stokes and other health problems. As the medical bills piled up, the couple struggled.

The Amersons stepped in to help, buying the home in 2011 after helping the couple with mortgage payments for five years.Despite the change in ownership, Varner and Weber continued to live in the home.

"It may not have been the best financial decision, but this was about helping two dear friends," Amerson said.

Varner grew ill and died at home on Dec. 23, 2016. Weber died nine months later, having developed an infection after a fall in the backyard.

"We all kept saying 'be careful,'" Amerson said. "Now the house without them is just a house."

Amerson has the house listed to sell at $165,000. It is zoned as both commercial and residential.

"I'm not trying to make money off Bobby and Terry," Amerson said. "I just want to recover my investment. They never had the money to fix it up, so we're selling it as is."

Rodrigue and Amerson don't have strong feelings about what it should become. They just want to see it return to glory.